A Friendly Passion
by tang0cat1
Summary: They say when you realize you're in love, it hits you like a wave of realization, and suddenly everything is clear. I used to think that that was true, and I believed it with all my heart. But now I realize, it's nothing like that.
1. A Friendly Passion

They say when you realise you're in love, it hits you like a wave of realisation, and suddenly everything is clear. I used to think that that was true, and I believed it with all my heart. But now I realise, it's nothing like that.

It's more like when you dive into a swimming pool, and it shocks you because it's so cold. And then, when you start to get deeper, your ears and lungs start to hurt because you're running out of air. And then, as you go back up, you get that small moment of panic when you think you won't make it in time, but then you reach the top and take that first breath of air and it feels so good. It's more like that.

The best feeling in the world when you can breathe, but a struggle to get to the top.

XxXxX

I screamed at my dad in frustration and stomped up the stairs to my bedroom, slamming the door furiously. Merlin, how I _hated _my dad sometimes. Sometimes he just plain frustrating.

I had had a letter the previous day inviting me to James Potter's house – my best friend and practically my brother – but because I had tried to snuck out the other night to go out with my other best friend, Sirius Black, I wasn't allowed to go, because I was officially grounded.

Quickly striding over to my desk under the window, I pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill onto which I quickly scribbled a note to James, explaining I would be a little late, and asking if I could stay for the remaining week till we go back to school.

I sent it off with my owl 'Huston' and started to pack my trunk. All my books were shoved in the corner, to make space for my robes, and most importantly, my Quidditch uniform. Quidditch was and still is, one of the most important things in my life ever since I had started at Hogwarts, and I treasured it close to my heart, as I did my necklace from my mum, and the photo of me and her on my ninth birthday.

She was always smiling, my mum. She was the happiest person in the world, and made sure that I was always happy as well. She even named me Addyson, with literally means 'awesome.' That makes me happy whenever I think of it.

Her smile could light up a room. She would walk in with a smile on her face, and the whole room, whether it was sad or not, would just brighten immediately.

I wish I had inherited her smile, but sadly, I got my dad's boring one. I got her brown hair and her eyes though, and I was happy about that.

She had also had the most amazing eyes. I had never seen them anywhere else, except when I look in the mirror, and they were a colour that could never be replicated. No artist would ever be able to get the right colour, and no picture ever capture it perfectly.

They were the most striking green anyone had ever seen. Brighter than emerald, but darker than lime, they were the perfect mix of dark and light green. They had specks of white around the pupil, and gold around the edges.

I smiled at my mum in the picture and picked it up, packing it in my trunk. Once everything was done, I sat down on my bed and waited for a reply from James.

Not long after I had sat down, Huston came flying in through the window and dropped a letter in my lap. I fed him a quick treat and opened the letter.

_Hey Addy,_

_You idiot. Why did you get caught on Saturday?_

I could practically hear him laughing at me. I rolled my eyes and continued reading.

_Sure you can come. Just pack your things and Mum'll look after you. She'll want to talk to your dad though, so be warned. Sirius is here, as you probably know, so watch out. He's excited to see you, he's still grumpy that you got caught before he could see you on Saturday._

_Just don't get caught climbing out the window this time, yeah?_

_James._

I stuffed the letter in my pocket, and grabbed Huston's cage, luring him in with a trail of owl treats. I put my wand in my other pocket, and gripped the handle of my trunk. Heading over to my window, I dropped my trunk in the bushes below, and shimmied down the drain pipe to the ground, ignoring the disgruntled squawks coming from Huston.

I stuck my arm out to hail the Knight Bus – which technically should be called the Day Bus, since it was 12 o' clock – and it came screeching around the corner. I hopped on, waving to the conductor, and secured Huston and trunk on a seat, before securing myself.

It was a bumpy ride, but I survived. Just.

I pushed open the Potter's front gate, and strolled up the path. When I reached the front door, I knocked my knuckles loudly on the door. I had barely pulled my hand away before the door was flung open and I was wrapped up in a huge hug.

"Urgh, Sirius, you smell like wet dog!" I exclaimed. It was true, he did. His hair was wet, and he was shaking it around deliberately as he lifted me off the ground in a tight hug.

"Thanks Addy. You don't see me for nearly ten weeks, and the first thing you say to me is an insult." He laughed, setting me back down on the ground.

"You shouldn't smell like wet dog then." I shrugged, stepping past him and into James' house. "James!" I shouted, cupping my hands around my mouth to make it just that bit louder.

He came thundering down the stairs, with a shout of, "Addy!" and scooped me up in another tight hug. I laughed, and slapped his arm playfully. "Put me down!"

James chuckled and let his arms drop from around me. I crumpled to the ground and glared back up at him. Sirius let out a bark of laughter and took my hand, pulling me up. A little scream escaped my mouth as I was jerked up in a rather violent manner.

"Addyson!" I heard a woman call and I turned around, just to be hugged again by James' mum.

"I swear, if I get hugged one more time…" I muttered, as I hugged Dorea Potter back. She laughed and pulled away, letting me breathe finally.

"Come, come I have lunch set up in the garden. Have you told your father that you're here?"

"Uh, well that's a good question…a very good question…"

"So he doesn't know you're here?!"

"He'll work it out." I shrugged and walked past her, into the kitchen and out the back door, into the garden. There was a large spread on the table, much like the food at the Great Hall. There was a small meat pie on the table, and I ran forward, squealing in excitement.

I love pie. Any kind of pie. All pie. Savoury pie, sweet pie. I just love pie.

I grabbed the pie, and dug into it straight away. Sirius, James and Dorea hadn't even made it outside yet, and I was already half way through it.

"I should've known if I put a pie on the table there wouldn't be any left for the rest of us." Dorea chuckled, taking a seat at the head of the table. Sirius sat down next to me, and stole some of the pie before I finished it.

"Mmm munm mime!" I grunted, trying to steal the pie back.

"Pardon?"

"That's my pie!"

"Ah, well, tough." Sirius wolfed the pie down before I could steal it back

"You meanie!" I shouted, trying to stab him with my fork.

"You love me anyway."

I narrowed my eyes at him, but gave up trying to stab him. I took a slice of pie from James' plate and started eating that instead. He frowned at me and I stuck my tongue out at him.

"I should have made more pie." Dorea sighed. I nodded eagerly, fully agreeing with her.

Charlus, James' dad, emerged from the kitchen wearing his suit and carrying a heavy briefcase. He kissed Dorea on the cheek before greeting the rest of us.

"Darling, when did we get a daughter?" He asked, winking at me.

"About twenty minutes ago." Dorea shrugged, grinning.

"Ah, I see. Hello, I'm Charlus Potter, welcome to the family." He came round the table, and stuck his hand out for me to shake. I took it, grinning, and shook it vigorously.

He ruffled my hair, and I squeaked, and he moved on, patting Sirius and James on the head, and sitting down opposite Dorea at the other end of the table. He took a slice of pie, and I frowned at him. That was the last slice of pie. The last slice of _my_ pie.

We chatted for a while, mostly about how my summer had been, and they let me complain about my dad for a bit before Dorea brought up the topic of me being here without telling my dad.

"So are you going to tell Roger that you're here?" She asked, looking at me expectantly.

"No." I shook my head firmly. She pursed her lips and raised an eyebrow at me.

"If you don't, I'll have to."

"He'll work it out, trust me. Where else would I go?"

"Hmm."

Charlus frowned at me but said nothing.

Sirius nudged me. "Aren't you grounded?" He hissed in my ear.

"Possibly." I hissed back. He chuckled and went back to his plate of pie. I decided he was eating it too slow, and stole the last bite. He glared at me, poking me in the side.

XxXxX

Dorea had sent a letter to my dad – without my permission - and although he was extremely angry, he had agreed to let me stay at James' house. I let out a sigh of relief when she told me, because I had been really scared that he would march over here and drag me back home.

"I'm staying!" I shouted, running up the stairs into James' room, where he and Sirius were relaxing. It was too hot to go outside, so they were hanging out in the cool indoors.

"You've always been able to wheedle your way out of things, titch." James grinned, shuffling over on his bed to make room for me. 'Titch' was his nickname for me because I was so small and 'titchy'. Only he was allowed to call me that, however. Some guy had called me that when he'd been flirting with me and I'd kneed him in his 'area'. It was a fun day.

I sat down next to him on the bed, leaning against his bedframe and putting my feet in Sirius' lap. He pushed them off but I replaced them and he rolled his eyes at me, leaning his back against the post of James' headboard.

"So where're you staying? My room?" Sirius winked, and I kicked him. He grunted and glared at me. He was just lucky I hadn't kicked him in his 'area' like I normally would.

"I have my own room, remember?" I made an ugly face at him and he made one back at me, just as hideous. I did have my own room, however. I spent enough time at the Potter house that it was practically my second home. Dorea had given up on me, because I kept moving things from my house into the guest room, so they had just turned it into my room for when I stayed, which was nearly every weekend.

"Maybe I'll stay with you then."

"If I find you anywhere near my room, I will hex you to next Wednesday."

"You're sixteen."

"I'll risk it."

* * *

**Eeee, my new baby! I've still got my Fred and Hermione fic going, but I woke up one morning with the idea for this story in my head and just had to write it down. I also have another story floating around but it's probably best to limit myself, you know.**

**So leave me a review my lovelies, because they keep me going!**

**Toodle Pip xx**


	2. Butterflies Drink Blood

I woke to the sound of shouting, and a little bit of cursing. Bolting out of bed, I grabbed my wand – even if I technically couldn't use it – and ran out of the room onto the landing.

I followed the sound of the cursing and shouting, and looked over the railing to the entrance below. James was standing there, with his wand pointed at Sirius, who had his own wand pointed at James' chest.

"_What _are you _doing_?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at them.

"Looking good, Miller." Sirius called shooting me a quick look and a wink. I looked down at what I was wearing and a small blush crept up my neck. I was only wearing a small, slightly revealing tank top with small booty shorts.

"Shut up."

"He stole my pancake." James growled, glaring at Sirius.

"Sorry, what?" I blinked at the pair, who were still pointing their wands at each other.

"He took my pancake. And now, he must die."

"But you're not seventeen yet." I pointed out.

"I'll risk it." James said, imitating me from last night.

"Why are you fighting him back, Black?" I asked, turning to Sirius. "Huh, back Black, back Black." I repeated, chuckling to myself.

"Honour." Sirius shrugged.

"So you don't really care either way?"

"Oh, I care. I just know that I'll win."

"Awfully cocky for someone who's about to get punch – ah there it is." I said, as James punched Sirius in the stomach. And pretty hard too, judging from Sirius' shouts of pain.

Sirius clutched his stomach, and bent over, moaning. "Ow – oh merlin! I just ate you idiot!" He lunged for James, but he jumped out of the way just in time. Damn his excellent seeker skills. I would have loved to see a fight. When Sirius punches people, he does this cute little thing where he flicks his finger at the same time, taking out their eye as well as their jaw. I don't think he realises that he does it, but it's a pretty smart move.

"I know." James grinned cheekily, and stuck his tongue out at Sirius.

"I hate you."

"Love you too darling." James winked and ran away, cackling to himself. Sirius and I exchanged a look, and I sighed, making my way downstairs to help Sirius stand.

We heard a high pitched squeal, and James came running back into view, waving a piece of parchment in the air.

I burst out laughing at James' excited face and had to lean on Sirius to keep myself standing. He was also laughing quietly, not as boisterously as me.

"Oi. What are you laughing at?" He frowned at me. I simply laughed harder. Oh, my stomach was starting to hurt now.

"That's a very…high…sorry – " I was laughing too hard to talk. He tapped his foot impatiently while I caught my breath. "That's very, ah, high – pitched _squeal_ you've got there Jamesie - poo."

"I do not _squeal_."

"You kinda do." Sirius shrugged.

"Yeah well, you talk in your sleep. About A – "

I didn't get to hear the rest of what James was going to say, because Sirius had lunged forward and grabbed at James, knocking him to the floor. They wrestled on the ground for a bit, and I rolled my eyes, raising a bored eyebrow at the pair. Sirius grinned sheepishly up at me from the ground, where he was sitting on James' stomach.

"So what's in the envelope?" Sirius asked, his voice slightly higher pitched than normal. I shot him a confused look, before stealing the letter out of James' hand. He protested, but Sirius wiggled his butt, digging it into James' ribs, and James grunted, but gave up struggling.

"'_Dear James_,'" I read. "_'Thank you for the letter. I'm good, you? My summer has been a bit iffy. Petunia has been giving me grief, but don't worry, I can handle it. I haven't bothered (even after all these years) to explain to her that I can't do magic outside of school, so I use that as my threat._'" I made an appreciative face. That was a pretty good threat.

"I think you can stop reading now." James squeaked from underneath Sirius, who elbowed him and gestured for me to go on.

"Well, it gets a bit boring for a while…oh here we go! '_I was wondering if you wanted to meet up before school goes back. We could go to Diagon Alley and get some school things, and just hang out?'_"

"Ooh, Prongsie has a date!" Sirius sang, while James blushed bright red.

"Oh, and she ends it with '_Lily xx_.'" I laughed, showing Sirius, who let out a bark of laughter.

"She loves you." Sirius sang.

"She wants to kiss you." I chanted.

"Shut up." James muttered. I patted him sympathetically on the head and skipped into the kitchen. Sirius followed me, and a blushing James shuffled in behind him.

"Hello!" Dorea greeted me with a plate of pancakes. I took them, grinning at her, and poured half a bottle of maple syrup on them. James shot me a disgusted look and I stuck my tongue out at him. James _hates_ maple syrup. He says it's too sweet. I personally believe that he's ridiculous and doesn't understand what true love tastes like.

Sirius attempted to steal a pancake, much like he must've done with James, but I stabbed him with my fork. He screamed, quite girlishly in my opinion, and cradled his hand close to his chest.

"You stabbed me!" He screeched.

"You tried to steal my pancake!" I shouted back.

Dorea swept in with her wand and pulled Sirius' hand away from his chest, waving her wand over the small, fork shaped holes.

"Addyson, sometimes violence _isn't_ the answer." Dorea tutted at me.

I shrugged. "I believe in that situation, it was perfectly justified."

"I agree." James said. "Pancakes are something to be protected. At _any_ cost."

"Sedation. That's what you two need. _Sedation_." Sirius muttered, frowning at me and James.

I tucked into my plate of pancakes, grinning cheekily at Sirius. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at me, obviously not trusting me.

Come for my pancake, and you die.

XxXxX

James had written back to Lily, agreeing to meet her at the Leaky Cauldron at approximately 2 o' clock. It was now 1 o' clock, and he was freaking out.

I was lying on his bed, flipping through the latest edition of Witch Weekly, rolling my eyes at all the stupid celebrities. They needed to learn, just because they were famous, didn't mean they could use magic around poor, unsuspecting Muggles.

"This is ridiculous! I can't go meet up with Lily! What if she was just joking with me? And she's going to prank me or something! I mean, it's a pretty low prank, even for her, but it's always a possibility! Maybe I shouldn't go…save myself the pain." He was pacing up and down the room, wringing his hands.

"Lily would never do something like that to you. She obviously wants to meet up with you, or she wouldn't have asked you." I reassured him, barely looking up from my magazine. "Hey, do you know who Angelina Jolie is?"

"Are you sure? Then what should I wear? And who?" James stopped pacing and shot me a weird look.

"Angelina Jolie. I don't know who she is either. A muggle 'actress'." I shrugged. "Supposedly she's a witch?"

"Huh. So she's not muggle?"

"Well, if she's a witch, she's not going to be a muggle." I said sarcastically. He stuck his tongue out at me and I grinned cheekily. "I'm thinking blue…"

"What?"

"Blue. You know, that blue t - shirt you have?"

"Which blue t - shirt?"

"You know, the blue one."

"Thanks. That _really_ clears things up." James narrowed his eyes at me and crossed his arms.

I sighed, and stood up, stomping over to his open draw and started pulling clothes out of his dresser. I threw them across the room, a couple even landed on his head. He shot me a grumpy look, until I pulled out a crumpled blue t – shirt.

"Ah ha!" I shouted triumphantly, waving it at him. He took it out of my hands and looked at it strangely.

"This doesn't look like – "

"Hey, have you seen my blue shirt?" Sirius called, walking into the room. "Oh, there it is," He took it out of James' hands. "Thanks Prongs." He patted James' on the back and walked back out of the room again. I and James both stared after him strangely.

"So it was Sirius' shirt…" I murmured, nodding to myself.

"I knew I didn't have a blue shirt." James said, still looking at the door through which Sirius had just exited. I shrugged at him, and ran out the door after Sirius, throwing a red t – shirt at James' head.

"Wear that one!" I shouted as ran out the bedroom door and onto the landing, leaving James to stare at the t – shirt in his hands, confusedly.

I stepped into my own room, and started to choose my own outfit for the day as I still hadn't got dressed. I had put some more pants on, considering I only sleep in boy shorts and a tank top, but I was technically still in my pyjamas.

My trunk was full of clothes, but none of them were really clothes I wanted to wear. They all had something about them that just didn't appeal. I pulled on some denim shorts and an oversized Holy Head Harpies Quidditch shirt. I didn't plan on going out today – unless James dragged me with him to meet Lily - and either way, the outfit had a sort of messy charm about it. I pulled my hair into a messy bun and just let it sit on the top of my head, not bothering to brush it. It was too long, and wavy to be bothered with. I just wanted it off my neck, because it was supposed to be hot today.

I heard a wolf – whistle from the door, and span around. Sirius was leaning against the doorframe, giving my bare legs an appreciative look. I supposed, if I was going to wear shorts that showed off my legs, I would have to expect some kind of comment from Sirius. He was wearing the blue t – shirt, and it was clinging to his stomach, which looked slightly damp from his shower he had just taken, showing off his reasonably defined abs.

"Oh, go away Black." I muttered, blushing slightly. I seemed to be blushing a lot more recently and I couldn't work out why. It was really frustrating me.

He shook his head, making his damp hair spray the area around him with water. I just so happened to be within that area, and felt a load of water hit my face. He was too much like a dog for it to be normal.

"I hate you." I frowned, wiping my cheek. He grinned his famous mischievous grin and I made a face at him.

"I love you too, sweetie."

XxXxX

James, Sirius and I flooed to the Leaky Cauldron at ten to two. He had managed to convince me and Sirius to come with him for moral support.

James was shaking terribly, and had to lean on me for support at one point. I tried to label this as being shaky from the floo – which had been quite rough – but I suspected it was probably fear of it all being a prank from Lily.

"It'll all be fine. We'll hang around in Florean Fortescues and if you have a problem, bring her there and I'll do a bit of flirting for you." Sirius shrugged, waggling his eyebrows and wrapping an arm around my shoulders, leading me away from James, who was extremely pale.

We entered the small ice cream parlour, and I took a seat by the window, a perfect vantage point to see the whole of Diagon Alley. I spotted James standing outside the Leaky Cauldron, running a hand through his air nervously.

A few minutes later, after Sirius had brought me a huge chocolate sundae, Lily arrived and James seemed to have a quick heart attack. He recovered quickly and strolled up to Lily casually, and waved.

I watched them talk for a few minutes before they began to walk down the streets. James occasionally lifted his arm, as if to put it round her shoulder, but would drop it again when he realised she would hex him into oblivion if he did.

He started to run his hands through his hair, and I cursed him silently. Lily hated that. I should know, I was her best friend.

But strangely, she didn't hit him, like she usually does. She instead, pulled his hand away gently and smiled at him. He smiled back, but there was a hint of curiosity in the look. He was probably just as confused as I am.

I tucked in to my sundae, resting my chin on my hand and looking back out the window. James and Lily had sat down on a bench opposite the owl emporium, and Lily was admiring the white owl standing proudly in the window.

"Addy, your ice cream!" Sirius said loudly, and I turned my attention back to him, just in time to watch my ice cream drop from my spoon into my lap. I shrieked as the ice cold cream landed in my lap.

"It's so cold!" I exclaimed, dropping my spoon, which clattered to the table. Sirius let out a bark of laughter, and grinned at me.

"Its ice cream, it's gonna be cold!" He laughed, watching me jump up and hop around. I made a face at the ice cream that was dripping from my shorts, and running down my legs.

"Get if off me!" I squealed. Normally I wasn't a hugely girly person, and I was a lot tougher than some of my other friends, excluding Dorcas Meadowes of course. But ice cream dripping down your legs, is never fun, and never will be.

Sirius, who was still laughing - the jerk - handed me a tissue and I used it to wipe the ice cream off my legs. He shook his head at me, and I stuck my tongue out at him. I took my seat once again, glaring at him.

"You're such a wuss." He chuckled.

"Oh really?" I raised an eyebrow. "Would you like me to remind you of the time a _butterfly _landed on your nose and you screamed like a little girl?"

"That was ages ago." Sirius scoffed.

"That was yesterday."

"I've grown up since then."

"_Yesterday_." I reminded him.

"I grow up quickly." He shrugged.

"The butterfly was never gonna hurt you."

"Butterflies drink blood."

"When you're dead! Are you dead?"

"I'm dead inside." Sirius joked, trying to arrange his face seriously. He failed miserably.

I rolled my eyes at him and laughed. He grinned happily at me and continued eating his ice cream. I dipped my spoon into the melted slosh that was left and turned to look out the window again.

James and Lily were still sitting on the bench, but now James had his arm around Lily and she didn't appear to be protesting much. In fact, even from here I could see that she was blushing furiously. She wouldn't meet his eyes and James was grinning like Christmas had come early.

I looked over to Sirius, and he was watching me, just as intently as I was watching James and Lily. I smiled at him, and he smiled back fleetingly, turning quickly to look out the window.

"Aw, isn't it cute. Prongsie's found himself a girlfriend."

"Not quite." I said, pointing out the window, where James was watching Lily affectionately. "Lily hasn't said yes yet."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, James hasn't asked her out yet, so Lily hasn't said yes yet."

"How do you know he hasn't asked?" Sirius frowned, watching James start to say something.

"Because you would hear shouting." I shrugged simply. Lily loves James, I really think she does, she just hasn't realised it yet, and probably won't realise it for a while. Sirius and I just have to keep pushing them together till she realises her feelings for our bespectacled friend.

"Not necessarily."

"Lily may have feelings for James, but that doesn't mean she won't shout at him if he asks her out."

Sirius nodded in agreement, and we both turned back to look at the pair and screamed in shock simultaneously. Lily and James were kissing. They were practically glued together.

"They – they're – what?" I choked, staring at the two.

"Breathe!"

"You can talk." I said, still not taking my eyes off the pair. It had been a whole minute now.

"Hey!"

"You know it's true."

"Shut up." Sirius pouted. I laughed, but continued to frown at the pair. It was getting close to two minutes. This was unnatural.

Finally they pulled away, and James looked over to the window where me and Sirius where sitting. He met my eyes over Lily's head and grinned at me. I winked back and shot him a thumbs up.


	3. Snow White and the Seven Dwarves

**Yay, third chapter. I love these moments in the story, when it's still under ten chapters, and it's still a baby :)**

**Oh, and you get twelve cookies if you catch my Dobby quote ;)**

* * *

"You kissed Lily – kins!" Sirius had shouted almost the exact moment that James had walked into the ice cream shop. He had blushed furiously and refused to talk to either of us until we got home.

I struggled really hard not to tell Dorea, but in the end the urge overwhelmed me and Sirius and I blurted it out at the exact same time. I could have tried harder, but I've never been one for self -control.

"James kissed Lily!" We shouted when we entered the kitchen, where Dorea was sitting reading the paper.

She jumped, and looked up in surprise. "Pardon?"

"James. Kissed. Lily." I said slowly. She shot me a stern look but smiled nonetheless. I grinned at her and hopped up on the kitchen counter, swinging my legs.

"I see. And Lily is the lovely girl who likes to try and kill my son on a regular basis?"

"That's the one." Sirius nodded, taking a seat next to me on the kitchen counter.

"I see." Dorea repeated.

"She doesn't try to kill me." James muttered.

"Only to maim, or seriously injure you." I nodded, winking at him. He rolled his eyes, but nodded slightly all the same.

"So you kissed her?" Dorea asked.

James blushed in answer. "Mum, do we really have to talk about this?"

"Yes. I want to know everything about this girl, and how you of all people managed to get her to kiss you."

"Thanks mum." James frowned and looked at his feet as if they were suddenly the most interesting thing in the room. I laughed and Sirius chuckled quietly.

"She's a red head. She's got green eyes and a hell of a lot of freckles – " Sirius began.

"She's amazing." James interrupted, adopting a dreamy tone.

Dorea looked at her son strangely, but let him continue.

"She's got the most brilliant smile, it lights up a whole room. Her laugh is the most beautiful sound, and when she's laughs, there's nothing else that matters in the world, other than making her laugh again. She can't go to bed without a cup of tea, and it makes her talk in her sleep. You could join up the freckles in her cheeks, and she'd still look just as beautiful. It's the little things that just make her the most amazing person in the world." He said, his face tilted up to look out the window, but his eyes were glassy, like he wasn't really focused on what was happening outside the window.

Dorea smiled warmly at her son and looked at me, confusedly. 'Is he always like this?' She mouthed at me. I shrugged and nodded.

She looked very proud of her son at that moment. To be honest, I was pretty proud of him too. That was one of the first times he had properly told us how he feels about Lily. Usually it's just 'I love Lily', 'date me Evans', 'Evans will you go out with me,' and although I know how deep his feelings run for Lily, he isn't usually the best at expressing it, so it was really heart - warming when he did.

"That's so sweet!" She simpered, standing up and wrapping him up in a motherly hug.

"Get off me mum!"

XxXxX

"Hey," I said, looking up from the book I was reading. Sirius looked over at me from the armchair in the corner of my room, and raised an eyebrow. "Do you think the whole 'mirror mirror on the wall, who's the fairest of them all?' thing was started so that when little girls did it in the mirror the reflection wouldn't change and they would realise how beautiful they are?"

Mum always used to read muggle fairy tales to me. She was a muggle – born and wanted me to embrace that half of my heritage. They were my favourite times with her. We would curl up in my bed and pull the covers up to my chin, and she would read me a different fairy tale every day. Once we reached the last one, we would start again.

I could recite the whole storyline of Cinderella, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, including all the minor details. I could quote every one of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales - and the other authors - even the more gruesome ones. I enjoyed scaring Sirius with some of the disgusting areas of the fairy tales, like the birds in Cinderella.

"What?" He turned to full face me, and shot me an inquisitive look.

"Well, if their mirror shows their face when they ask the question, they will believe that they are the prettiest in the world. And then they'll be happy." I grinned and silently congratulated myself for some pretty intuitive thinking.

"Why would they ask a mirror a question?"

"Snow White and the Seven Dwarves?"

"What?"

"Have I never read you Snow White? An abomination! I must read it to you!" I gasped, and put a hand to my chest in astonishment.

"I don't need – "

"Of course you do." I jumped up and ran to my bookshelf, pulling my book of faiytales off the shelf. He groaned, but joined me on my bed. I leant on him, and opened the book.

We read together for the next hour. Sirius kept commenting on the names of the dwarves but I shushed him and elbowed him occasionally. When we finished it, he looked at me like I was crazy.

"You read this stuff?" He asked.

"Yeah, it's good." I argued, pouting slightly.

"She wanted her heart in a box!"

"He gave her a sheep's heart instead!" I defended.

"She made friends with seven dwarves who are named after their _personalities_!" Sirius raised his eyebrows at me.

"It's cute!"

"Her name was _Snow White_!"

"Ah shut up." I gave up. He obviously thought it was ridiculous, and there was no point arguing. He tapped my nose and took the book out of my hand, looking the cover over.

"This is a weird cover." He commented, taking in the intricate gold swirls reaching across the top and down the sides.

"It's no weirder than most Wizard books." I shrugged, trying to snatch it back. He held it above my head and dangled it over me. I reached for it, but his arms were strangely long, and I couldn't reach it.

He dropped it, and luckily I caught it or it would have crushed my skull. The book wasn't exactly light.

"You meanie."

"You love me anyway."

"Ha, sure."


	4. Home

**Thanks everyone who has read my story so far, and those people who took the time to follow or favourite this story as well :)**

* * *

I woke up on the morning of our first day back at Hogwarts, and jumped out of bed excitedly. I had to sit back down again however, when I all the blood rushed to my head and I felt very dizzy.

I barely had a chance to recover, when Sirius came running in, wearing nothing but some pyjama pants, waving a shirt in front of my face.

"Get dressed! We going Hogwarts!" He shouted, not forming his sentences properly. I rolled my eyes at him, and swatted the shirt out of the way.

"Sorry, I didn't realised you were four. I was under the impression that you were nearly 18." I raised an eyebrow at him. Sirius winked at me, and pulled the shirt on over his head.

"Emphasis on the _nearly_. I can act as childish as I want."

Sticking my tongue out, I got up again, and started to throw things back into my trunk, like I had a week ago.

"You're great at packing." Sirius commented, sitting down on my bed to watch me pack.

"I only have to put old clothes in here." I shrugged. Looking around, I noticed my wand wasn't on the bedside table where it usually is. "Where's my wand?"

"In your hair."

I reached up, and put my hand to my head. A long, thin object fell into my hands, and I grinned, chuckling slightly. "There it is!"

"You always tuck it behind your ear and then forget." Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Do I?" I crinkled my forehead into a frown. He nodded, smiling fondly at me. "Oh."

I resumed throwing things into my trunk, narrowly missing Sirius' head with a book. I carefully took my book of Grimm's fairy tales off the shelf and laid it, protectively, in my trunk, cushioned by clothes, and my Quidditch uniform.

"You love that book don't you?"

"You should know that. You've known me for how long?"

"Since you were 11?"

I nodded, and wrapped another cloth over the book. Pressing the lid down, I sat on the trunk to click the clasps together. I clapped my hands together, and stood up.

"Packed!"

"That was quick. You've forgotten something."

"No I haven't." I shook my head and frowned at him. He merely pursed his lips and frowned back.

XxXxX

We boarded the train in a hurried manner. Sirius had wasted time in my room, and had taken longer to pack than expected. We had arrived at the station with two minutes till the train left.

Dorea and Charlus offered quick goodbyes, with a fleeting hug and a small peck on the cheek for each of us before pushing us onto the train.

We waved at them through the window of our compartment, and the train pulled out of the station.

"I need to find Lily and Marlene." I said, as soon as the station was out of sight.

"Bring James his girlfriend, yeah?" Sirius winked as I left the compartment. I just caught James smacking Sirius over the head.

I made my way down the aisle, looking into every compartment, trying to catch sight of red hair. I reached the other side of the train, near the Head's compartment and saw Lily sitting with Marlene, Dorcas and Mary.

I pulled back the door and all went black.

There were flashes of red and blonde every so often, and occasionally I saw the light, and then I was elbowed in the stomach and felt my bum hit the floor. Suddenly I was flattened by a heap of bodies, and had the air knocked out of me.

"Alright, _alright_!" I shouted, rolling out from underneath the pile of people. "People calm down!"

"Addyson Miller, have you never heard of an owl? I know you have a perfectly good one, and yet I never got a letter from you. Not a single one! And how hard is it to sit down, pick up a quill and put it to the parchment!" Lily jumped up, hands on her hips.

"Sorry _mum_. I didn't have time. Avoiding Dad, you know. It surprisingly fill's a lot of one's schedule."

She sighed, and narrowed her eyes at me. I ignored her and looked around the compartment. Marlene was still lying on the floor, and Dorcas was sitting on the seat, staring in the other direction, a glassy look in her eyes. She had never even gotten up. She didn't want to greet her friend. How dare she?!

"Hey Dor." I waved at her. Her head snapped to face me and she smiled slightly.

"Hi Addy. Your summer how?" She asked me. I raised an eyebrow and frowned.

"You okay Dor?"

"Sorry, yeah I'm fine." She shook her head. I narrowed my eyes at her and studied her face. She was looking extremely flustered looking, and her hair was messy. Suspicious. Dorcas may be more boyish than the rest of us, but she didn't exactly look messy most of the time. She was surprisingly quite a well-kept person for someone who spends half their life on a broomstick.

"You met a boy!" I pointed a finger at her, accusingly.

"I did not!"

Marlene gasped and jumped up from the ground. "You did! I knew something was off!"

"Oh merlin." Dorcas groaned, putting her head in her hands.

"You can't hide anything from me, Dorcas Meadowes!" I shouted, grinning wickedly at her.

"I'm not hiding anything!"

"Oh, you so are." Lily grinned, practically bouncing on the spot.

"I can assure you, I'm not." Dorcas said darkly, her eyes taking on a scary glint. This was her 'I'm going to beat you up if you don't shut up' look. Although still disbelieving I took a seat next to her, and shook my head at Lily, who looked like she very much wanted to continue the conversation. I knew when Dorcas was dangerous, and when Dorcas was dangerous, it was best not to cross her.

"So ladies, how were all your summers? Lily had an excellent – " I was silenced by Lily, who put a hand over my mouth, and sat on my lap.

She wasn't quick enough however to distract Marlene's and Dorcas' attentions.

"What?" Marlene asked, sitting straight up from the floor and turned her head to face her straight on. "What happened in your summer Lily?"

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing." Lily squeaked, glaring at me.

"Why do I feel like people are hiding things from us Marlene?" I raised an eyebrow at the blonde girl. She nodded and frowned at Lily.

"Yes…We will find out." She warned. "Wait, do _you_ know?" She asked, turning to face me instead.

"Of course. You wanna know?"

"Of course I wanna know. Tell me!" She whined.

I ignored Lily protests, and shoved her off my lap.

"Well, I was staying at James' for the last week of the summer, and he gets this letter from Lily. It _seems_ they've been writing each other for quite some time." I waggled my eyebrows at Lily and continued. "So Sirius and I accompany Jamsie to Diagon Alley, where he meets this red head beauty and they spend about an hour talking while Sirius and I eat ice cream. And _then,_ I look over, and they're full on makin' out. Like eating each other's faces!"

Marlene squealed and jumped up, dancing on the spot. "I knew it! I knew it!"

I jumped up with her and we danced around the compartment together, jumping up and down excitedly.

"They're gonna fall in love and they're gonna get married!" Marlene shouted.

"And they're gonna have beautiful babies that are amazing at everything and it's gonna be fabulous!" I shouted back. Dorcas laughed, but Lily just scowled at me.

"That's not going to happen." She muttered, crossing her arms over her chest and slouching down in her seat.

"Not so nice being teased about boys is it?" Dorcas raised her eyebrows at Lily. She stuck her tongue out at Dorcas and crinkled her nose.

Marlene and I continued jumping around until Dorcas stuck her leg out and we both tripped. I fell on top of Marlene and rolled off of her.

The compartment door opened and four feet appeared in my line of vision. I turned my head up to face the owners of the feet, and saw Sirius and James towering over me. Behind them was two more sets of feet belonging to Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew.

"Hi guys." I grinned, waving awkwardly. Sirius shook his head exasperatedly at me and stepped over me and Marlene. Marlene, as soon as she saw Sirius, blushed slightly. She and Sirius had dated for a while last year but it hadn't worked out. Even after remaining friends, she hates embarrassing herself in front of him. She's the sort of person who always has to look perfect.

"Watcha doing?" Sirius asked slowly, looking down at me.

"You know, relaxing." I put my hands behind my head and reclined on the floor. "See, chilled."

"You look so relaxed. You comfy?" He sat down on the seat next to Lily and rested his feet on my stomach. I pushed them off, but he replaced them and I gave up. It wasn't the most comfortable position, squished up on the floor of a train compartment, with someone's feet on my stomach but I was making it work.

"Hi Moony, Wormy." I waved at the two boys still standing in the door. James had sat down opposite Lily, a slight tinge on both of their cheeks. Remus smiled and waved lightly, whereas Peter squeaked nervously. After _six years_ he was still scared of me, and nearly every other girl in the school. Even the first years sometimes. It was worrying really.

"You sure you're comfy down there Titch?" James raised an eyebrow at me from the seat on my other side. I turned my head to face him, and poked my tongue out at him. He then rested his own feet on me, and I sighed, resigned to being the compartment footrest for the rest of the train ride.

"_Ladies and Gentlemen we will be arriving at Hogsmeade Station shortly. Please make sure you have all your belongings with you."_

I propped myself up on my elbows and looked out the window. I could see Hogsmeade, and Hogwarts in the distance, the lights on in all the towers and the golden glow lighting up the rest of the magnificent castle.

"Leave, let us get changed." Lily pointed to the door and the boys stood up, leaving the compartment. Sirius waved goodbye flirtatiously at everybody and fluttered his eyelashes before prancing out of the compartment. I rolled my eyes at him and followed them out of the compartment to get my clothes from my trunk in the boy's compartment. I got there literally two seconds behind James, Remus and Peter, and yet when I entered the compartment, James and Remus already had no shirt on.

Remus luckily has the common sense to wear a singlet shirt so his privacy remains intact, whereas James has absolutely no shame whatsoever in just stripping off his shirt and showing off his 'abs'. Peter was sort of cowering in the corner, waiting for me to leave I assume. He needs to get over this fear of girls. He will never get a girlfriend otherwise.

"James, just wait a sec ya know? Let me get my clothes, and then perhaps you can do your little strip show? I don't want to see it however." I made a face at him, and reached up to pull my clothes out of my trunk. He stuck his tongue out again, and I exited the compartment with my robes in one hand, and sending him a rather rude hand gesture with the other.

I changed in the girl's compartment and had to walk back down the train, clothes in hand to get back to my trunk in the guy's compartment. Sirius was getting changed when I walked in this time. Now Sirius, Sirius had proper abs. Like full on six pack.

I felt a blush creep up my neck and I looked away.

"Embarrassed Addy?" He teased, throwing a wink in my direction. James laughed and wrapped his arms around my head, shielding my eyes from Sirius' muscular stomach.

"Not embarrassed. Merely ashamed." I said, my voice slightly muffled by James' chest.

"Mhmm. This is nothing to be ashamed of sweetheart." I assumed he was gesturing to his stomach, as I still couldn't see anything except for the black of James' robes.

"I would be ashamed."

"Only because you would have such a manly stomach which would be weird considering your gender."

"Your 'abs'," I used air quotes. "Are shameful."

"In no way, are my babies shameful!"

"Your _babies_?" I heard Remus laugh incredulously.

"You heard right." Sirius said.

"Only egotistical losers name their six pack." I frowned into James' chest. "Hey Jamsie." I called.

"Mm?" He answered.

"Not that I don't appreciate the squishy pillow that is your chest, but I would rather like to breathe air that isn't contaminated by your stinky cologne sometime soon."

"Hey!" James released his hold from around me but glared at me, crossing his arms.

"You know it's true."

"You stink James." Sirius said.

"Oh you can talk." James scoffed, making a disgusted face at Sirius.

"What do you mean?"

"You stink on a daily basis. I swear you have about fifty bottles of cologne on today." I wrinkled my nose and stuck my tongue out in disgust.

"If I see your tongue one more time today…" Remus scolded.

"Sorry _mum_." I stuck my tongue out at him.

I felt the train pull to a stop in the station and I jumped up and down excitedly.

"Hogwarts! Hogwarts!" I shouted.

"Someone's a little overexcited." Sirius laughed, wrapping an arm around my shoulder and pulling his trunk along in his other hand. We stepped off the train and onto the station, and I sped up a little, excited to get back to Hogwarts.

Hogwarts is the only place I feel at home. Not James' place, not with Dad. Hogwarts.

I was home.


	5. The Head Tower

When I reached my dormitory after the feast, my trunk was sitting on my bed, but I ignored it and fell onto my bed, feeling exhausted. I hadn't even done anything today other than get up and get on a train, but I somehow felt extremely tired.

Lily however, had been rushing around all day, only to find when she walked into the dormitory door that she didn't have a bed anymore.

"Oh!" She exclaimed suddenly. I rolled over onto my stomach and propped myself up onto my elbows.

"What?"

"I'm Head Girl!"

"Yeah...And?" I wasn't quite catching the drift. Sure, she was Head Girl now…I didn't need reminding that one of my best friends had more power than me and that I actually had to start listening to her. She's already threatened a detention and we've only been back at Hogwarts for five minutes.

"So I live in the Head's Tower now!" She started jumping on the spot like an excited two year old.

"Oh. So you're not gonna live with me anymore?" I pouted, sitting up.

"Oh, Addy you'll survive without me. You've still got Marley, Dorcas, Alice and Mary." She said, sitting down on my bed next to me and wrapping a comforting arm around my shoulders.

"At least I won't get woken up by being lifted into the air by my ankles anymore." I smiled. For about a week last year, I kept missing my alarm, so Lily started lifting me into the air by my ankles to wake me up. She actually had to drop me twice the first morning to wake me up. I'm a heavy sleeper.

She laughed and pulled me up with her. "Come on, we're off to find the Head's Tower."

She tugged me along nearly all the corridors, and up a _lot_ of stairs. I had forgotten that there were so many staircases in this place.

We arrived in front of a large portrait of a sleeping Godric Gryffindor, and Lily paused. She turned to me, with a slightly panicked look in her eyes.

"I don't know the password." She muttered, looking rather worried.

"Knock?" I suggested, probably looking equally as worried.

Lily frowned at me, but raised her hand and knocked on the frame of the portrait. Godric jolted awake, and glared at her.

"Excuse me young lady, but pray tell why you are knocking on my portrait at this time of night?" He asked.

"I don't know the password. And I'm Head Girl." Lily pointed to her Head Girl badge, sitting proudly on her chest. The portrait nodded, but still didn't open.

"You gonna open for us buddy?" I said, crossing my arms.

"I can't just let you in. You could've stolen the badge off some unsuspecting girl." He crossed his arms as well, one arm crossed over his sword protectively.

"But I didn't…" Lily said slowly.

We heard footsteps coming from behind the portrait, and it swung open, to reveal a shirtless James standing in the doorway.

"Good sir, please cover your torso!" Gryffindor shouted.

"Sorry Gryffindorio." James jogged quickly back to the sofa behind him and grabbed the shirt that was lying on the back of it. He pulled it over his head, and ran back over to the portrait hole. "Better?" He raised an eyebrow at the portrait.

Gryffindor frowned in disapproval, but nodded. "I wish for you not to call me _Gryffindorio_."

"Sorry." James apologised. "Gryffindorio." He added under his breath.

"Ahem." Lily coughed, her arms crossed.

"Yes my precious Lily – flower?" James turned his attention to Lily and I, finally.

"Can I come in?"

"Why of course my darling red – head." James stepped away from the door and gestured for me and Lily to come in.

"Don't call me that. I am not _yours_." Lily's lip curled in disgust as she stepped through the portrait hole. I followed her, rolling my eyes at James, and sharing an exasperated look with him.

"Oh wow." I gaped, looking around the large common room. The ceiling was an almost perfect replica of the one in the Great Hall, showing us the stars. The room had a small study corner, over by a huge window overlooking the lake, and the beach tree where Sirius and I became friends. I also count that as the time that I first met Sirius.

_Technically_ we first met on the train on the 1st of September, but I don't count that because that was the most awkward moment of my life and I would rather erase it from my memory and pretend it never happened.

And _technically_ we met loads of times in class since we're in Gryffindor but when I say under the beech tree was the first time I met Sirius, I mean the first time I saw the true Sirius. He was always playing and pranking, making jokes and teasing all the teachers but I always felt there was a sad aura around him. And then, I went to talk to James under the tree, and Sirius was there, and we ended up talking to each other about some pretty serious stuff, and ever since then, we've been best friends.

"This place is amazing." Lily's jaw could not have dropped open further.

James shrugged. "It's alright."

"Alright? This is more than Alright. This took Alright and shoved it out of the window. It shoved Alright out the window of a fifty story building, off the moon and into another dimension. This is…this is more than words can describe." I raised both my eyebrows and felt my jaw drop open slightly in shock.

Now, I understand that James is rich, as in _rich_. But even he must have been shocked at how amazing this room was.

"So where's my room?" Lily interrupted my shocked thoughts, looking James in the eye for once.

"Up the stairs, to the right." James pointed over to the spiral staircase at the back of the room. Lily ran over to the stairs, pulling me along with her. She tugged me up the stairs very fast and into the first door on the right.

She stopped short, and I crashed into the back of her.

"Oh wow." I repeated.

The walls were a deep red, with lighter red flowers reaching across the walls in long vines. Her large four poster bed stood proudly in the centre of the far wall, with rich red sheets, and floaty white hangings, which I personally feel wouldn't keep any privacy since they were so sheer. She had a huge mirror in the corner, with an intricate gold pattern engraved around the frame. I could see some Latin words written in the top but I couldn't make them out from here.

"This room is beautiful." Lily said, stepping into the room but keeping her hand firmly on the round doorknob for support.

"You could hold some serious sleepovers in here." I muttered, walking past her and falling onto her huge bed.

"I'm not sure that would be allowed." She frowned, walking over to the mirror and examining the words.

I sat up and watched her move around the room. "Do you know what it says?"

"'_Veritas, Bonitas, Pulchritudo, Sanctitas'." _She read slowly.

"What does that mean?" I asked.

"'_Truth, Goodness, Beauty and Holiness'._"

"That's weird thing to put on a mirror."

"Not really." Lily shrugged, turning to face me. "You look in your mirror every day, what better place to put a saying to remind you to be truthful, good and holy. And it shows you your beauty, so it actually kinda fits putting it on a mirror."

"Huh. How do you know Latin, anyway?"

"We go to Hogwarts, Addy. You pick it up as you go along." Lily shot me a condescending look.

"Excuse me, but I don't remember learning the words for Truth, Goodness, Beauty and Holiness. They never really came up."

Lily stuck her tongue out at me and I stuck mine out back. She rolled her eyes.

"Immature."

"You can talk."

* * *

**Sorry it's so late, but I have been swamped with stuff to do, and have had the worst writers block this week! And when Tuesday rolled around, I only had about four letters on the page, so I decided to leave it to Saturday so I could spend a day writing!**

**Anyway, hopefully see you next Tuesday.**

**Toodle Pip xx**


	6. Potion Gone Wrong

**I'm really sorry that it's been like a month since I updated last, but its school holidays now and I have nothing else to do with my life, so I'm writing whenever I can and so my chapters will be a lot more regular. Yay!**

* * *

It's only been two days since we arrived back at school, and I've been late to the first class both of those days.

I miss Lily.

Lily was the one who always set the alarm, or woke me up if I slept through the alarm. Marlene and Dorcas are useless and just let me sleep, assuming I would wake up in time, when I _never _do. They seem to have forgotten that I am the heaviest sleeper in the world and wouldn't wake up if an apocalypse was happening.

So, thanks to my useless so - called best friends, I was late Potions for the second time this week. It didn't help that Slughorn _hates _me.

Ever since I walked in the door on the first day in first year, my when I spilled a potion on his toe and his toe just _happened_ to enlarge to the size of his head. I didn't plan it, it just…happened. I've never been the best at Potions. Or Transfiguration. Or Charms. Or any of the subjects really.

I pushed open the dungeon door, and slid into the chair at the back next to Sirius, trying to be as quiet as possible. The door creaked loudly, and the whole class turned their attention to me, and Slughorn stopped mid – sentence to glare at me.

"Detention, Miss Miller, my office, 7:30 tonight." He turned his attention back to the board, waving his wand, the instructions appearing on the board for whatever potion we were making.

I groaned, and slumped down in my chair.

Sirius chuckled and leaned over in his seat, sliding a piece of parchment along the desk.

_Late again?_

_**Lily sets the alarm. **_I sighed and pushed the parchment back.

_And you can't set an alarm spell?_

_**I forget. **_

_You're lazy._

_**No…**_

_Yes… _

_**Fine. I just don't like getting up early. **_

_You could still set the alarm. _

_**No I couldn't. **_

"Miss Miller, do you want another detention?" Professor Slughorn interrupted our not passing.

"No sir." I pushed the parchment away from me.

"Then start making the potion I've set." He frowned at me and turned away. "Ah, Miss Evans, that's excellent! Perfectly made!"

I closed my eyes and leant back in my chair, trying to catch up on my sleep.

Sirius nudged me but I ignored him. I heard his chair scrape on the cold tiles of the dungeon floor, and assumed he must have gotten up to start making his potion, finally.

"Miss Miller." I heard Slughorns voice snap, after about ten minutes. I sighed, but still kept my eyes closed. "Miss Miller, pay attention to your potion."

I felt a wet feeling on my foot, and then a burning sensation creeping up my leg. My eyes snapped open and I looked down at my leg. The potion that Sirius had been making on my table had spilled over and landed on my foot. Now, a gloop of green potion was sliding its way up my leg.

I screamed and jumped up, flailing my leg around, and hopping on one foot. Sirius let out a bark of laughter and sat back in his chair, watching me jump around.

"Stay still Miss Miller!" Slughorn shouted, pointing his wand at me. I ignored him, and continued to jump around the room. The burning feeling in my leg was getting fiercer and now it was more of a searing sensation. The potion had made its way to my thigh now, and I was in rather a lot of pain.

"Get it off me!" I screeched, still trying to shake it off.

I heard James shout something and then the potion evaporated, leaving a red mark on my leg, in a trail up to my thigh. It looked something like an intense burn. My head started to feel a bit dizzy at the sight of burning flesh, and I felt my knees start to weaken.

"Oh look, I've got a bit of a burn." I murmured before fainting.

XxXxX

I came too in the Hospital Wing, with a pounding feeling in my head. Putting a hand to my head, I groaned and tried to sit up. Immediately, two hands grabbed my arm and there was an excited shout from my left.

"Addy!" I heard Sirius shout. I turned my head and saw his face inches from mine.

I screamed again, and he jumped away from me.

"Merlin, you scared me!" We said together. We shared a look, and grinned at each other.

"Are you okay? You fainted!" Sirius said seriously, sitting down on my bed next to me.

"Oh, my leg's fine. Slightly burnt, but I'll deal with it. But why does my head hurt? The potion didn't reach my head did it?" I felt around my head and discovered a huge bump. "Oh that's why…"

"Ah, yeah, the potion never reached your head…"

"So how'd I get this bump?"

"Ah, I didn't catch you in time." He muttered.

I rolled my eyes. "Oh no, my knight in shining armour failed me! However will I cope?! I must run off to my tower and cry because I have been let down!" I exclaimed sarcastically, putting a hand to my chest.

"Oh, haha." Sirius crossed his arms, and glared at me.

"Hey, I'm the one with a huge bump. Why are you so angry?"

"Nothing." Sirius dismissed it. "So, Pom Pom's says you have to stay in here for at least three days, because the potion's burns refuse to leave with a simple spell."

"Darn." I pouted. I hate the Hospital Wing. It always smells of hygiene and cleanliness. I hate it.

"I'll visit you every day." Sirius promised.

"You'll have class." I pointed out.

"Meh, they stopped worrying about me years ago." He shrugged.

I slid back down on my bed, and closed my eyes. I felt Sirius nudge me but I ignored him.

"Wake up." He insisted, poking me repeatedly in the stomach.

"No." I clamped my eyes shut and tried to fall asleep. The lump on my head was pounding, and I just want to go to sleep.

"No, I'm serious, wake up." Sirius poked me harder.

"Why?" I cracked one eye open and frowned at him.

"Because you have concussion and if you fall asleep you might die."

"But I'm_ tired_." I whined. "Let me go to sleep. I promise I won't die." I grinned at him, but he frowned and rolled his eyes. I shut my eyes again and leant into my pillow.

"No!" He shook my arm roughly. "You can't go to sleep!"

"Fine!" I snapped, sitting up quickly and crossing my arms across my chest, ignoring the shooting pain in my head.

Sirius smiled happily and sat back in his chair, grinning annoyingly at me.

"So, what do you want to talk about?"

"I dunno." He shrugged, still grinning at me.

"Well, suggest something. There is nothing to do in this damn place, and you're keeping me awake, so you have to bring the topics of conversation." My dad always used to say that you should always come to table with three topics of conversation, or there was no point in you coming at all.

"I have nothing to say."

"Then let me go to sleep." I moaned, throwing my head back. Mistake. My head started spinning and pain shot through my head.

"_No_! Stay awake!"

I groaned and slowly pulled my head back up. "Where's Madame Pom Pom's when you need her? Shouldn't she be giving me a potion for the pain?"

"She's speaking with Dumbledore or something. She said she'd be back in a minute."

"It's been _ages_." I whined.

"It's been like five minutes." Sirius scoffed.

"That's _ages_ in Addyson Time."

"Addyson Time?" Sirius raised an eyebrow at me.

"Yes." I nodded, again feeling slightly dizzy. "Every minute in normal time is an hour in Addyson Time."

"So, you've spent five Addyson hours in the Hospital Wing?"

"Yes."

"That's a long time." He had a thoughtful look on his face. The kind of thoughtful look that I don't trust. He's planning something.

"Yes it is. See? _Ages_."

"I could do a lot in five minutes then."

"No, because for _you_, five minutes is still five minutes." I shook my head. Oops, mistake. I need to stop moving my head.

"So, for you, time moves faster, but for every one else, we're stuck on the slow path?"

"Well, no, because I would then have more hours in a day and so more wasted time in a day. And more time spent waiting for things. Let's say I'm waiting in a doctor's office. If I'm waiting for twenty minutes, that's twenty hours, which is nearly a whole normal day."

"Doctor's office?" Sirius cocked his head to side in confusion.

"Healers office." I wave him off and continue. "So you see, I've got so many more hours in a day to you, which means I basically have wasted my whole life. You see my problem?"

"You're so weird. It's adorable." Sirius chuckled, patting my head.

"Ow!" I shouted. He hit my bump.

"What's wrong? Are you okay? You feeling okay?" Sirius jumped, a worried look on his face.

"No, _no_!" I pushed him back down into his chair. "I'm fine, you hit my bump, that's all."

"Woops." Sirius looked sheepish. "Sorry."

I rolled my eyes and looked around the room, tapping my thumbs together. Madame Pomfrey didn't appear to be coming in anytime soon. I might as well sit back and wait.

Just as that thought passed through my mind, the two double doors to the Hospital Wing opened, and Madame Pomfrey walked in, bustling her way over to my bed.

"Mr Black, why on earth are you still here?" She asked, walking around my bed so she was facing Sirius. "You still have two lessons to attend."

"Well actually Poppy, if I may call you Poppy – "

"You may not."

" – I have no lessons until after lunch so I have about an hour and a half until I need to go back to a lesson."

"You may only visit for another 15 minutes." She pursed her lips, and started muttering spells, running her wand up and down my body.

"I'm fine, it's just my head." I waved her wand away. She shot me a withering look and continued her muttering.

"I need to fix these burns on your leg now, otherwise you will have permanent scarring."

"But it doesn't hurt."

Madame Pomfrey sighed and stopped moving her wand. "It may not hurt now, but it _will_ hurt in a month when you play in your game against Hufflepuff and can't grip the broom. It _will_ hurt in ten years when you're running after your children – if you choose to have them – and have to limp. It _will _hurt in twenty years when you can't move it."

"But it's just a little scarring." I said feebly, looking at my leg.

"Just a little scarring that carries the poison from a badly made potion," I glared at Sirius, "That will spread into your bloodstream and slowly kill your leg, and then you."

"Oh."

"Can I heal it now?"

"Sure." I nodded, waving my hand for her to continue. She rolled her eyes at me, and started muttering the spells again. "Sirius said you wouldn't be able to remove the burns with a simple spell."

"This isn't a simple spell." She said. I felt a slight tingling in my leg and the twinging pain that I had been ignoring for the past five minutes settled into a dull throb. It throbbed for a bit, before stopping completely.

"Huh, thanks."

"You'll have to stay in for a few days, rest that leg. Here, drink this." Madame Pomfrey pushed a cup into my hands. It had a green, swirling liquid in it that looked extremely disgusting.

"Do I have too?" I curled my lip up at it and shot her a disgusted look.

"Yes." She shook her head at me, and walked off into her office.

I put my hand to my nose, squeezing it tight, and took a swig of the horrid liquid. It tasted foul, and burned as it slid down my throat.

My eyes started to feel heavy, and my vision started to go blurry.

"Oh, there I go. Night Sirius." I muttered, before blacking out completely.

* * *

**Okay, I am genuinely sorry about how long this has taken me. Like, if I could apologise two billion hundred thousand times, I promise you, I would. **

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter though! It was a bit of a ramble but it's a chapter at least.**

**Leave me a lovely review to show you forgive me :)**

**Toodle Pip xx**


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